Precision instrument bearings and other delicate instrument components, such as electronic devices, are extremely sensitive to atmospheric particulate contamination. To prevent the accumulation of electrostatic charges during transport or storage, these components are often packaged in antistatic polyethylene or nylon containers. As shown in earlier studies, long-chain surface seeking surfactants, currently used as antistatic agents, produce adverse effects after extended contact with bearing steel surfaces and their lubricants: migration of the antistatic agent from the polymer surface to the lubricant and ultimately to the bearing surface causes physical or chemical changes in the lubricant and/or nonwettability of the bearing by the lubricant. Concern for improvement, therefore, has elicited a search for alternate packaging materials whose conductive properties do not depend upon the incorporation of surface-seeking additives.
Additionally, doping of some polymers changes the characteristics (flexibility, strength) of the polymers to make them unsuitable for packages. Some antistatic packaging materials are sufficiently conductive only in humid environments, thus making these of limited use.
While the fluoronium ion-implanted polymers employed in this invention are known, these polymers have not heretofor been suggested as antistatic packaging materials. Therefore. their suitability as antistatic packaging materials has been unexplored until now.